Sufe Bradshaw talks ‘Veep’ role

On TV, she’s sort of a b!tc#. But when you ask Sufe Bradshaw if she’s anything like her character on the new HBO series, "Veep," her response is more politically correct.

“I do have a very disciplined streak about me. But I’d have to say, no, I’m a lot nicer than her,” she laughed.

"Veep," which recently got the green light for a second season, is a comedy about a female Vice-President of the United States, played by former "Seinfeld" star, Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Sufe (pronounced Soo-fee) plays the role of Sue Wilson, a straightforward, no-nonsense executive assistant to the second in command.

“I am having a blast! The show is going great and I couldn’t pick a better group of people to work with,” she said.

The 7th of 10 children, the Chicago native considers the role her first big acting gig. After graduating from the Los Angeles City Theatre Academy, she flipped burgers at Universal Studios before landing guest starring roles on shows like Fox’s "Bones" and "Prison Break," and appearing in the blockbuster film, Star Trek.

Perhaps, her timing couldn’t have been better. With Hollywood vets like Kerry Washington ("Scandal") and Taraji P. Henson ("Person of Interest") taking on leading roles in network television, the opportunities for Black actresses appear to be growing.

“I think that the good news is that the three of us can be any race in those shows. I’m so grateful that more characters are written to be a nondescript race. What a great time right now in entertainment,” she said.

But her interests go beyond acting. A blogger, spoken word artist and community activist, she’s currently working on a documentary titled New Leaves about inner-city youth and why some end up down the wrong path, and others don’t. The film is expected to be released in early 2013.

“I’m really fascinated with the idea of finding the turning point in a kid’s life,“ she said.

As for whether her future holds any real life roles in politics, is a proposition she won’t veto.

“If I hadn’t been an actor, I would have been like a lawyer. There’s something really attractive about justice in that sense. So, yeah, we’ll have to keep an eye on that to see if there’s a place for me in Washington.”